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SQL Server FAQ - "sp_rename ... 'COLUMN'" - Renaming an Existing Column

By: FYIcenter.com

(Continued from previous topic...)

How to rename an existing column with the "sp_rename" stored procedure?

If you have an existing column in a table and you want to change the column name, you can use the "sp_rename ... 'COLUMN'" stored procedure. "sp_rename" allows you to change names of COLUMN, DATABASE, INDEX, USERDATATYPE, and OBJECT. The tutorial example below shows you how to rename a column:

USE master
GO

sp_rename 'tip.subject', 'title', 'COLUMN'
GO
Msg 15248, Level 11, State 1, Procedure sp_rename, Line 213
Either the parameter @objname is ambiguous or the claimed 
   @objtype (COLUMN) is wrong.

USE FyiCenterData
GO

sp_rename 'tip.subject', 'title', 'COLUMN'
GO
Caution: Changing any part of an object name could break 
   scripts and stored procedures.
   
SELECT id, title, description, author FROM tip
GO
id  title      description               author
1   Learn SQL  Visit dev.fyicenter.com   NULL

You are getting the first error because 'FyiCenterData' is not the current database.

(Continued on next topic...)

1. What is a table?
2. What are DDL (Data Definition Language) statements for tables?
3. How to create new tables with "CREATE TABLE" statements?
4. How To Get a List of All Tables with "sys.tables" View?
5. How To Get a List of Columns using the "sys.columns" View?
6. How To Get a List of Columns using the "sp_columns" Stored Procedure?
7. How To Get a List of Columns using the "sp_help" Stored Procedure?
8. How To Generate CREATE TABLE Script on an Existing Table?
9. How to create new tables with "SELECT ... INTO" statements?
10. How To Add a New Column to an Existing Table with "ALTER TABLE ... ADD"?
11. How To Delete an Existing Column in a Table with "ALTER TABLE ... DROP COLUMN"?
12. How to rename an existing column with the "sp_rename" stored procedure?
13. How to rename an existing column with SQL Server Management Studio?
14. How to change the data type of an existing column with "ALTER TABLE" statements?
15. How to rename an existing table with the "sp_rename" stored procedure?
16. How To Drop an Existing Table with "DROP TABLE" Statements?